Drapery fixture



w. c. KENNEY DRAPERY'FIXTURE Feb. 26, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 25, 1953 United States Patent DRAPERY FIXTURE William C. Kenney, Cranston, R. I., assignor to Kenney Manufacturing Company, Cranston, R. I., a corporation of Rhode Island Application March 23, 1953, Serial No. 344,009

1 Claim. (Cl. 248-263) This invention relates to drapery fixtures and more particularly to a base fixture for attachment to a window casing or thelike .adapted for convenient mounting and for supporting other drapery fixtures at a point beyond the limits of the window casing.

Conventional drapery'and window shade installations employ various types of supporting fixtures or brackets. Window shades require one type of bracket, curtain rods another, and still other types of brackets are employed for crane rods, festoon holders and various types of draw curtains, cornice mountings and valence boards. These brackets are generally secured to the wooden frame members of a window, alcove, entry-way or the like. It is often diflicult to install these support brackets in the proper position and spacial relation one to the other and to insert the attaching screws because of the height of the window frame and the location of the screw holes. Furthermore, once the brackets have been installed, it is extremely difficult to make minor adjustments in their alignment which may be important in achieving an accurate fit between the rods and the brackets and to correct sagging after long periods of use. Another disadvantage inherent in the installation of these brackets is that when they are removed to change the form of drapery employed, they leave unsightly screw holes in the face of the woodwork. A further disadvantage is that such installations are extremely diflicult to adapt to change and they do not permit mounting the curtain brackets beyond the limits of the window casing because such fixures cannot be readily secured to the plaster wall without damaging it.

It is an object of my invention to provide a base fixture for receiving a muliplicity of different types of drapery supporting fixtures so that they may be conveniently mounted in place on the base fixture which may then in I turn be mounted on the window casing. Another object is to provide such a base fixture with means for mounting the same on a window casing both in such a way as not to mar the woodwork of the window casing and simultaneously to support the drapery fixtures at a point beyond the limits of the said casing.

It is also an object of my invention to provide such a base fixture adapted to support conventional drapery fixtures and permit ready adjustment thereof for purposes of accurate leveling and alignment after the said base fixture is secured to the window casing.

It is still another object of my invention to provide a fixture capable of supporting drapery brackets at a point beyond the limits of a window casing without injuring the plaster adjacent to the said casing, together with means for positioning a pair of said base fixtures, one at each side of said casing in accurately proportioned spacial relation one to the other.

In the accomplishment of these and other objects, I employ a relatively thin angular arm member to which is welded a base plate adapted to lie in the plane of the window casing or other base frame. The angular arm member is secured to' the window frame and the base plate supports the drapery brackets.

It is a feature of my invention that the base plate is provided with an inturued flange which is likewise provided with a second flange turned parallel to the base fixture. This second flange is adapted to abut against the plaster of the wall when in position beyond the limits of the window frame and by presenting a wide area to the plaster, prevents any damage thereto caused by pressure on the base plate. It is a feature of my invention that the base plate is provided with a series of slots and elongated holes by means of which conventional drapery brackets may be mounted. It is also a feature of my invention that the angular member is provided with index marks in order to facilitate accurate positioning of the bracket relative to the window casing. Thus, the desired brackets and support fixtures may be conveniently mounted on the base plate of the base fixture in the proper position by means of nuts and bolts and without having to screw them into the window casing. Thereafterthe entire assembly may be secured to the window frame by means of screws passing through appropriately located screw holes on the .arm member, some of which permit the screws to enter the side or top of the window casing thus avoiding injury to the face of the said casing. The index marks facilitate accurate positioning of the said base fixtures, and the combination of the nut and bolt arrangement together with the elongated holes permits minor adjustment of the brackets after the base fixture is mounted.

Further objects and features of my invention will bestbe understood from a detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, selected for purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a view in perspective showing a right hand embodiment of the drapery fixture of my invention mounted horizontally on a window casing together with certain other curtain supporting fixtures mounted on the said base fixture; V

Fig. 2 is a view in perspective of a left hand embodiment of the base fixture mounted vertically with a different combination of curtain supporting fixtures mounted thereon;

Fig. 3 is a view in perspective of a right hand base fixture mounted horizontally with still another combination of drapery fixtures mounted thereon, together with a cornice board;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the base fixture of my invention;

Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the fixture shown in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a view in side elevation of thefixture shown in Fig. 4; and

Fig. 7 is a view in front elevation of an installation employing a cornice.

The preferred embodiment of my invention herein shown may be of metal or heavy plastic construction and includes in its general organization :an arm indicated at 10 and a base plate 12. The arm 10 comprises an angular metal member including a flange 14 lying in the plane of a window casing 16 and a flange 18 abutting the side edge of the window casing 16. The flange 18 is provided with screw holes 20 to facilitate securing the arm 10 to the side or top edge of the window casing so that the front face of the Window casing need not be injured. On the other hand the flange 14 of the arm 10 is likewise provided with screw holes 20 in the event it becomes necessary to secure the arm 10 to the window casing by means of screws entering the face thereof.

It will be understood, of course, that two such fixtures are installed for a single curtain installation, one being secured to each upper corner of the window casing.

The base plate 12 is attached to the flange 14 of the Patented reuse, 1957.

arm 10 and lies in the same plane thereof extending downwardly therefrom when the arm 10 is in the horizontal position. The said base plate 12 is provided with a pair of elongated slots 22 extending vertically thereof in spaced relationship and two shorter horizontal slots 24 extend ing from the said elongated slots towards each other. Three horizontal slots 26 are provided near the top edge of the flange 14 also penetrating the base plate 12 in the area where the plate 12 and the flange 14 overlap. Other elongated slots 27 are provided in the flange 18 near the base plate 12. The said slots 22, 24, 26 and 27 are positioned to receive numerous forms of drapery brackets and fixtures, and inasmuch as they do not confine the bolt, they permit leveling and other adjustment of the bracket after preliminary installation. The base plate 12 is bent to provide an inturned flange 28 which is likewise provided with a second inturned flange 30 lying in a plane parallel to the base plate 12. The flange 28 is provided with slots 32 adapted to receive anchoring means for the ends of the drapery.

Installing the base fixture of my invention is illustrated more specifically in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, where it will be seen that the arm 10 is secured to the window casing 16 by screws after other curtain brackets have been appropriately bolted to the base plate 12. The fixtures are accurately positioned by means of index marks 34 located along the flange 14 of the arm 10 so that a right hand fix ture as shown in Fig. 3 may be placed in accurate spaced relationship outward from the window casing relative to the left hand fixture which will go on the opposite upper corner of the window casing.

In Fig. 1 two types of curtain rod brackets are shown. In Fig. 2 a shade bracket, a curtain rod bracket and a crane bracket are shown. Fig. 3 shows another combination of curtain rod brackets. With this arrangement, it will be seen that once the fixture is installed on the window casing it is possible to readjust and level the installed brackets by loosening the bolts, re-positioning the brackets, and thereafter re-tightening the bolts while the base fixture remains in place.

Valance boards, cornice mountings, and the like may also be supported outward from the window easing by the base fixture of my invention In Figs. 3 and 7 I have shown a cornice mounting 36 secured to the flange 28 and supported laterally to the side of the window casing 16, without the necessity of securing the same to the plaster. It will be understood, of course, that valence boards and the like may be similarly installed and that they may also be secured to the base fixture when it is in the vertical position shown in Fig. 2.

After the base fixture is appropriately mounted on the window casing, it will be seen that the flange 30 will lie against the plaster wall surrounding the window casing and by virtue of the widened surface of the flange 30, damage to the plaster adjacent to the casing is avoided.

Since certain minor variations of the preferred embodiment of my invention herein shown will now be obvious to those skilled in the art, it is not my intention to confine the invention to the precise form herein shown, but rather to limit it in terms of the appended claim.

Having thus described and disclosed a preferred embodiment of my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

A base fixture for supporting decorative members having in combination, an arm including a pair of elongated flange sections at right angles to each other, the flange sections having screw holes therein, a vertical plate section secured to one of the flange sections of the said arm, said plate sections having elongated slots adapted to receive bolts for attaching a multiplicity of various types of drapery brackets, an inturned flange integral with said plate section, said inturned flange having slots therein adapted to receive other fixtures and connecting elements for the outer margin of a curtain, and an additional flange extending along the inner end of said inturned flange pro viding a wide base for supporting said plate.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 690,437 Iollitte Ian. 7, 1902 915,598 Hess Mar. 16, 1909 1,258,242 Ramsey Mar. 5, 1918 2,192,671 Boughton Mar. 5, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS 184,643 Great Britain Aug. 24, 1922 

